The sun will make a welcome return across the country over the next couple of days as areas hit by flash floods continue the clear-up.

Forecasters said expected heavy showers overnight had subsided and much of the country would enjoy "sunny spells", although temperatures are unlikely to soar to the same highs as last week.

Yesterday morning a deluge which saw more than half a month's rain fall in an hour in parts of East Anglia, the South East and London left h omes and streets flooded .

The hail and thunderstorms, described as a "zombie apocalypse" by one rail company, also meant commuters faced major disruption after tracks were damaged.

The Environment Agency removed flood warnings today and said flooding was not expected during the next three days.

But while temperatures will remain warm, a second spell of wet weather is expected to arrive on Friday night, forecasters warned.

John Lee, a forecaster for MeteoGroup, said: "That rain we had in the South East will clear this morning and many areas will have a dry and fine day with sunny spells. It will not be as warm as it has been but we could see highs of 27C (80.6F).

"There will be bits and pieces of rain in the North West and Scotland, but it is not going to come to much.

"In the next couple of days in the South it's staying dry with sunshine but it is not going to be hot like a week ago. There will be a mix of temperatures, mainly around 26C (78.8F) which is four to five degrees down but it will still be pleasantly warm.

"There will be rain in places, particularly in the North but even the rain is not heavy.

"Heading towards Friday and the weekend it will start to get more unsettled."

The Met Office said 43mm (1.7in) of rain - more than half the average monthly total for England in July - fell in an hour in Great Dunmow, Essex, between 4am and 5am yesterday.

Meanwhile, 37mm (1.5in) of rain was recorded in an hour in Isfield, Sussex, while i n Northolt, north-west London, 43.4mm (1.7in) of rain fell over a three-hour period.

A lightning strike at a sub-station in Hove, Sussex, sparked disruption for rail passengers travelling between Worthing and Hove and Brighton during the morning rush hour, while firefighters rescued people from homes and cars hit by floods.

Brighton station tweeted: "At a stand west coastway Worthing Brighton. Both ways due to zombie apocalypse."

London Fire Brigade rescued two drivers and their passengers from their cars in separate incidents after they became stuck in flood water in north-west London, while 20 houses were flooded in Bedford Road, Ruislip.

E ssex Fire and Rescue Service said it had dealt with 20 incidents in Thaxted, following flash flooding, including the rescue of five people from three neighbouring houses which were flooded.

The AA said it attended 34 flood-related call outs, mostly around west London and West Sussex, as East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service (ESFRS) received 300 calls within just a few hours.

A further 60 calls had to be passed to colleagues in Cambridgeshire as the storms swept in, causing a surge in 999 calls.